In general, refrigerators are apparatuses that keep food at freezing or less or at a temperature slightly above freezing by discharging cold air generated by a refrigeration cycle consisting of, for example, a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, and an evaporator to lower a temperature in a storage compartment thereof.
A typical refrigerator includes a freezing compartment in which foods or beverages are kept frozen and a refrigerating compartment in which foods or beverages are kept cold.
There are several kinds of refrigerators including a top mounting type refrigerator in which a freezing compartment is located above a refrigerating compartment, a bottom freezer type refrigerator in which a freezing compartment is located below a refrigerating compartment, and a side by side type refrigerator in which a freezing compartment and a refrigerating compartment are divided into left and right sides.
Recently, in addition to an original function of keeping foods refrigerated or frozen, functions of a refrigerator are being diversified. For example, a dispenser is installed to a door of the refrigerator to provide purified water and ice, and a display is installed to a front surface of the door to show a state of the refrigerator and to assist a user in controlling the refrigerator.
In addition, the capacity of the refrigerator tends to increase and, for efficient utilization of a receiving space, door shelves and receiving cases are affixed to an inner surface of the door to define spaces for receiving storage items.
More particularly, a refrigerating compartment door sometimes includes a main door to open or close a storage compartment, and a sub door pivotally mounted to the main door to assist the user in accessing an auxiliary storage chamber inside the main door through an opening formed in the main door.
In some cases, the sub door is selectively coupled to the main door as a hook member formed at a rear surface of the sub door is coupled to a latch device formed at the main door. When a user pulls a handle provided at the sub door, both the sub door and the main door coupled to each other are opened, so the user can access an open refrigerating compartment. A coupled state of the hook member and the latch device is released as the user pushes a latch release button formed at a front surface of the auxiliary door.
The latch release button penetrates the sub door to operate a latch release device that serves to release a locked state of the latch device.
FIGS. 1 and 2 are partial sectional views illustrating a main door and a sub door provided respectively with a latch device and a latch release device according to the related art as disclosed in Korean Patent Registration Publication No. 10-1347002, filed and registered by the applicant of the present application.
As exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 1, a locking unit to selectively couple the main door and the sub door 340 to each other includes a locking device mounted to the main door and a hook member 341 provided at the sub door 340.
In addition, a latch slot is formed in a front surface of the main door to which the locking device is mounted.
The locking device includes a locking assembly 610 mounted in a locking device mounting recess formed in the sub door 340 and a locking device cover 620 to shield the locking device mounting recess.
One end of the locking assembly 610 is caught by and trapped in the locking device mounting recess and the other end is fastened to the locking device mounting recess by screws.
In addition, a latch rod 615 is mounted to the locking assembly 610 and adapted to be pushed by a push rod 633 of an opening unit. The latch rod 615 is elastically supported by an elastic member 617, such as a spring, inside the locking assembly 610.
The hook member 341 constituting the locking unit is fastened to a rear surface of the sub door 340 by screws. In addition, the locking device constituting the locking unit is located at the front surface of the main door at a position corresponding to the hook member 341.
The opening unit is provided at one side of the sub door 340 at a position corresponding to the locking device and corresponds to a release means to release a locked state of the locking unit. The opening unit is adapted to be moved forward and rearward via user operation, thereby serving to release coupling between the locking device and the hook member 341. The opening unit is configured to be exposed from the front surface of the sub door 340. Accordingly, when the user operates the opening unit through the front surface of the sub door 340, coupling between the locking device and the hook member 341 is released, causing the sub door 340 to be opened.
The opening unit includes an operating button 632 that is mounted in the sub door 340 so as to be movable forward and rearward and operated by being pushed by the user and the push rod 633 that pushes the latch rod 615 by being moved forward and rearward as the operating button 632 is operated.
The locking assembly 610 includes a latch cam 612 rotatably mounted in a case to selectively trap the hook member 341, a stopper 613 to selectively limit rotation of the latch cam 612, and the latch rod 615 to push the stopper 613 rearward so as to allow the latch cam 612 to be rotatable.
A rod mounting portion 616 is formed in front of the stopper 613 and the latch rod 615 is forwardly and rearwardly movably mounted in the rod mounting portion 616. The rod mounting portion 616 is formed at a position corresponding to a position of the push rod 633.
The latch rod 615 is supported by the elastic member 617 such as a spring so as to be returned to an original position thereof by elasticity of the elastic member 617 when external force applied thereto is removed after rearward movement of the latch rod 615.
When the user pushes the operating button 632, a rear end of the push rod 633 applies pressure to a front end of the latch rod 615 to move the latch rod 615 rearward, thus causing the latch rod 615 to push the stopper 613. As the stopper 613 is pushed rearward, the stopper 613 is separated from a trap portion of the latch cam 612. Simultaneously, the latch cam 612 is rotated forward by elasticity of a torsion spring provided at the latch cam 612 so as to be separable from the hook member 341.
Referring to FIG. 2, the operating button 632, the push rod 633 and the latch rod 615, used to push the stopper 613 as illustrated in FIG. 1, are replaced with an actuator member 618 such as a solenoid and an input member 640.
An electric wire 642 extended from the input member 640 passes through an electric wire 619 by way of a controller to thereby be connected to the actuator 618.
That is, when the user touches the input member 640 or applies pressure to the input member 640, a corresponding signal is transmitted to the controller, and the controller operates the actuator 618 to push the stopper 613.
In the two above-described examples, both the latch rod 615 and the actuator 618 are arranged below the latch cam 612 and in front of the stopper 613 so as to push the stopper 613 rearward and pivotally rotate the same.
However, only one of the button operation structure and the solenoid operation structure may be applied as the latch release device and the button operation structure and the solenoid operation structure cannot be provided together. That is, the user cannot selectively operate a mechanical or electronic latch release device on a single door.
This is because the latch rod 615 and the actuator 618 must be accommodated in the case of the locking assembly 610 at a position below the latch cam 612 and in front of the stopper 613, and both the latch rod 615 and the actuator 618 may not be mounted at the same position.
In addition, because the latch rod 615 and the actuator 618 are operated to push the stopper 613 forward and rearward, a considerable increase in the thickness of the latch release device may result.